Conservatives love choice (except when it comes to women’s bodies). Since platforms Parler, Gab, Telegram and 4chan, haven’t been enough, they can now join Donald Trump‘s TRUTH social media app.
“We live in a world where the Taliban has a huge presence on Twitter, yet your favorite American President has been silenced. This is unacceptable,” Trump said in a written statement on the launch, referring to his suspensions from Twitter and Facebook.
TRUTH will be part of a larger media venture from the former “Apprentice” star. As Reuters reports, “the social network, set for a beta launch next month and full rollout in the first quarter of 2022, is the first of three stages in the company’s plans, followed by a subscription video-on-demand service called TMTG+ that will feature entertainment, news and podcasts.”
There have been concerns that platforms popularized by the right, like Telegram and Parler, create a breeding ground for the violent, reactionary politics that led to the Jan. 6 insurrection.
About a month after the insurrection, the House Committee on Oversight and Reform sent a letter to Parler’s chief operating officer, expressing concerns about its users. “On Jan. 6, Parler users actively took to the platform to call for violence and even ‘civil war,'” the letter stated.
The House letter also cited a USA Today article showing a “strong connection between President Trump’s speech at the Jan. 6 rally and a significant uptick in calls for violence on Parler.”
With Trump’s new venture, the right has yet another platform to talk about how silenced they are.